Tributes, tears, a 19-gun salute mark Sobers’ last journey

A Guard of Honour by young cricketers pays tribute to National Hero and cricket icon The Right Excellent Sir Garfield Sobers during his state funeral at Kensington Oval. (Photo Credit: Shamar Blunt) After more than five hours of a solemn and emotional journey that included stops at Parliament Buildings and Heroes Square, and a service of thanksgiving at cricket’s Mecca, Kensington Oval, the Right Excellent Sir Garfield St Auburn Sobers was on Wednesday laid to his final resting place at Coral Ridge Memorial Gardens, in an area allocated for other icons and legends. Under overcast skies and intermittent showers that seemed to suggest that even the heavens shed a tear, the state funeral procession of the boy who rose from humble beginnings in the village of Bayland to the pinnacle of the world’s sporting stage, started from Lyndhurst Funeral Home on Passage Road, and snaked its way through The City, watched by hundreds of residents and visitors lining the streets leading to the Oval. Members of the Barbados Police Service and the Barbados Defence Force escort the gun carriage carrying the body of Sir Garfield Sobers into Coral Ridge Memorial Gardens. (Photo Credit: Shamar Blunt) Employees and employers paused from their duties to get a glimpse of the procession: a Land Rover-drawn gun carriage bearing the national flag-draped casket, with members of The Barbados Police Service and the Barbados Defence Force, family of the late national hero, and members of the Cabinet led by Prime Minister Mia Mottley. At the Oval, where thousands — some of whom had gathered from as early as 7:30 a.m. — paid their respects, tributes flowed in word, song, music and poetry. Among the attendees, immersed in an occasion marked by sadness, laughter and deep reflection, were the country’s only remaining living National Hero, the Right Excellent Robyn Rihanna Fenty, bedecked in an all-black dress and sunglasses; President Jeffrey Bostic; Chief Justice Leslie Haynes; Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Prime Minister of Saint Lucia Philip J Pierre; and West Indies cricket icons Sir Clive Lloyd, Sir Vivian Richards, Sir Wes Hall and Brian Lara. One of the most stirring and heart-tugging tributes came from Lara, who described Sir Garry as “my mentor, my dad, my friend”. You Might Be Interested In Lara paused, seemingly trying to hold back tears, as he appeared choked with emotion when he recalled Sir Garry coming onto Antigua Recreation Ground to embrace him on breaking his 36-year-old world Test record of 365 runs. He told the packed stands at Kensington and those watching across the region and the world that the similarities between him and Sir Garry ended where he broke that record, adding that the late legend was much more. Lara shared stories of being mentored by him with regard to his batting, referring to one occasion on which he declared: “the genius fixed me again”. In a special message to “the powers that be”, he urged the introduction of a Sir Garfield Sobers initiative so that when the country celebrates his 100th birthday in 10 years’ time, it would see West Indies cricket re-emerging at the top again. Sir Clive Lloyd, who played under Sir Garry’s captaincy and became one of his closest friends, also described the late legend as a mentor who instilled great confidence in people. “He was somebody I looked up to. He was a kind and generous person. He would give you his last dollar,” he said. Sir Clive, one of the most successful captains of West Indies cricket, also urged officials to create opportunities for young cricketers by institutionalising the skills and teachings of Sir Garry in academic and career pursuits. Reflective and emotional tributes also came from Sir Garry’s children, and Prime Minister Mia Mottley. The late icon was also celebrated by a team of youth cricketers who formed a guard of honour, armed with bats, as the casket was taken to the centre of the main stage by a combined detachment of eight bearers from the police service and military. At Coral Ridge, the cricketing genius was further honoured with a 19-gun salute. The national flag that draped the casket was removed, folded and presented to his eldest son, Matthew, by a soldier. The haunting strains of the Last Post were played as his body was lowered into the grave, signalling the end of the final life’s innings of a man who was the personification of excellence, humility and fair play. Wreaths were laid by his family and other dignitaries, including Prime Minister Mottley, President Bostic, Minister of Sport Charles Griffith, Rihanna, and Cricket West Indies president Dr Kishore Shallow, and Prime Minister Pierre. But the evergreen songs in tribute to Sir Garfield, recorded by the world’s greatest calypsonian, the Mighty Sparrow, and by the late musical icon Sir Emile Straker, will no doubt play on in the hearts and minds of family, friends, fans and colleagues from across the cricketing world. (EJ)